Trials and tribulations of an enthusiastic but amateur birder

About Me, the Fledgeling Bird Nerd

I am by no means an expert birder. What I am is enthusiastic and willing to learn.

I started taking an interest in birdwatching in 2015 and soon fell in headfirst. I went out with friends of mine who were biologists, orinthologists, or keen nature nerds, and learned from them. I read books. Most of all, I carried a pair of opera glasses (easy to fit in my purse and have at all times!), and, later, a secondhand pair of binoculars with me everywhere, and I practiced. Suddenly, these feathery things I encountered all the time were absolutely fascinating to me. I began to notice when I saw something “out of the ordinary”. For me, that meant anything I didn’t know the name of before I started birdwatching… so anything that wasn’t a Canada Goose, Redwing Blackbird, magpie, crow, robin, or chickadee. (Did you know that there is more than one kind of chickadee?? I didn’t!) I got excited whenever I spotted birds and identified them. Why not give yourself the chance to have a little thrill of discovery interrupt your day?

Two of the things in this picture are Mallards, two of them are my feet. I’ve got this, you guys.

I want to pass along the learning strategies that have worked for me, share the little victories and blurry photographs of birds I’ve successfully managed to find and identify, and hopefully infect others with my passion for birds!